Al fresco shows for real New Yorkers (and their houseguests)

NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC IN THE PARK July 17
Great Lawn, Central Park (free)

Canadian soprano Measha Brueggergosman styles herself "no ordinary diva." And indeed,
few honest-to-goodness divas sport Afros and nose rings and confess a fondness for the songs of Jem and the Holograms. But Brueggergosman will perform a more traditional repertoire in this concert conducted by Sir Andrew Davis, including arias by Puccini and Weber. The program also includes Ravel's "Pictures at an Exhibition" and Strauss's tone-poem "Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks," a romp about a trickster hanged for blasphemy. newyorkphilharmonic.org

HOWL ON THE ROAD August 11
Lincoln Center Out of Doors, Lincoln Center
Broadway and West 66th Street (free)

photo: Alan D. Sugarman

George Gee, coming to Lincoln Center on June 19

They've got the beat. Or the Beats, at any rate. This summer, Lincoln Center Out of Doors has taken "The Summer of Love: Celebrating the Spirit of the '60s" as its premise. Even though Ginsberg's Howl was written in the '50s, this event will prove a centerpiece of the festival, a multimedia event that celebrates the look, sound, and literature of the '60s. Uptown will transform itself into the East Village with music, dance, and art installations.
lincolncenter.org

BROOKLYN WEST INDIAN CARNIVAL September 3
Eastern Parkway and Grand Army Plaza (free)

Maybe you can't afford a ticket to Barbados, Martinique, St. Kitt's, and Jamaica (and in the middle of summer, why would you want to?), but Brooklyn brings the islands to you in the form of this annual carnival. Costumes, beads, dancers, and steel-drum bands line Eastern Parkway, while stalls heap up roti, jerk chicken, and callaloo. The highlight may be not the actual parade itself, but the 2 a.m. "j'ouvert" the night before, when well-wishers gather on the street to mock and cheer the festivities to come. wiadca.com